NEW YORK – January 15, 2014 – Intensifying the infection of the American television audience, Syfy’s new drama Helix shattered channel ratings records for L+3 growth, soaring 64 percent in Adults 18-49 (1.2 million), 57 percent among Adults 25-54 (1.4 million) and 53 percent among total viewers (2.8 million).

This feverish percentage and absolute L+SD to L+3 growth for the Helix debut (Friday, January 10 at 10PM) are the highest for any Syfy original series premiere since Nielsen first recorded L+3 in 2007.

The Helix 24-hour marathon, which ran through Saturday, January 11 at 10:00PM, reached 9 million unduplicated total viewers, based on L+SD and L+3.

Helix is an intense thriller about a team of scientists from the Centers for Disease Control who travel to the high-tech research facility, Arctic Biosystems, to investigate a possible disease outbreak, only to find themselves pulled into a terrifying life-and-death struggle that may hold the key to mankind’s salvation or total annihilation. However, the lethal threat is just the tip of the iceberg, and as the virus evolves, the chilling truth begins to unravel.

Billy Campbell (Killing Lincoln, The Killing) stars as Dr. Alan Farragut, leader of the Centers for Disease Control outbreak field team called upon to investigate and control a potential outbreak. Hiroyuki Sanada (The Wolverine, 47 Ronin) also stars as Dr. Hiroshi Hatake, director of Arctic Biosystems and its mysterious viral research program.

Syfy is a media destination for imagination-based entertainment. With year round acclaimed original series, events, blockbuster movies, classic science fiction and fantasy programming, a dynamic Web site (www.Syfy.com), and a portfolio of adjacent business (Syfy Ventures), Syfy is a passport to limitless possibilities. Originally launched in 1992 as SCI FI Channel, and currently in more than 98 million homes, Syfy is a network of NBCUniversal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies. NBCUniversal is owned by Comcast Corporation.(Syfy. Imagine greater.)

I had a feeling people simply weren’t willing to tune in on a Friday. Hopefully this one sticks around.

Although; if it added 1.2m 18-49 (.95) that doesn’t really jive with the .6 +64% that they claim. Obviously it added the +64% to total 1.2m, but that isn’t how their statement makes it sound… Shame on you Syfy!

Drew (@TheEmulator23)

Watch it drop like a Rock. It was 3 hours of “Get to the Point.” It was a joke of a show & I like Billy Campbell. The suspense wasn’t there at all.

CCV

SyFy usually puts its marquee show on Friday. BSG did very well in the same slot.

Shepherd

@CCV

That was back when they had “Scifi Fridays”, and didn’t air wrestling on the same night. SG1 aired with BSG, and both shows did quite well for the network. Today, Monday is their ‘marquee’ night and they call it “powerful Mondays”. Airing Helix alone on Friday without a companion series hardly makes it their marquee show. Defiance aired on Monday and they put a lot of money into that show.

TWD SleepHollow rules

TWD fans should give HELIX a look. I don’t understand why there not.

cimmer

It’s because it’s on Syfy. Syfy just does not have a very good rep anymore; there are many reasons why, some of them even true, but I think that’s the reason. It’s kind of sad because I remember when back when everything Scifi tried in scripted series generated a certain level of excitement and that’s just not the case anymore.

cra

Another dreary and dark series on SYFY. Can’t this network do something a little lighter like Eureka. I can’t see this series lasting very long – eventually the audience is going to expect somekind of resoltion to the plague. How long can you play this story line out?